bare metal

put the pedal to the metal

To press down the accelerator (of an automobile) as far as possible; to accelerate to or travel at an automobile's maximum speed. It would normally take us three days driving to New York from Colorado, but with my brother putting the pedal to the metal, we made it in two.We're going to be late—put the pedal to the medal!

put the pedal to the metal

put the pedal to the metal

INFORMAL

If you put the pedal to the metal, you do something with as much speed and effort as possible. He is putting the pedal to the metal to deal with his critics. Note: Other verbs such as keep and have are sometimes used instead of put. Our players kept the pedal to the metal all season long. Note: This expression comes from the idea of pressing a car's accelerator (= pedal that makes it go faster).

with the pedal to the metal

keep/put the ˌpedal to the ˈmetal

(American English, informal) 1 drive a car quickly: Look, we’re running a little late so we kind of need to put the pedal to the metal.2 work hard; try to do something quickly: If we really put the pedal to the metal, Canada’s economy could certainly produce a third more than it does today.

Pedal in this idiom refers to the flat bar in a car that you press with your foot in order to make the car move more quickly (= the accelerator/gas pedal). The metal is the floor of the car.

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